Download Protocols on Health Emergency Risk Communication

The Politics of Emerging Infectious Disease
Presented by John Rainford
Director, Emergency Risk Communication,
Public health Agency of Canada
June 2013
SARS
H1N1
H5N1
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“Politics is who gets what, when, and how”
Harold Lasswell
Health Emergencies are Political
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Understanding Stakeholders Perspectives
What do they know?
What might they misunderstand?
Who do they trust?
Decision-Makers are stakeholders –
why don’t we try to understand them?
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“If you want to persuade me, think my thoughts,
feel my feelings and speak my words.”
Cicero
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Political Crisis Comms
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VS
Signal strength and
control
Challenge arguments
of dissenting views
Focus on how political
actors are perceived
Health Emergency Comms
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Discuss uncertainty, even
mistakes
Empathize with dissenting
views
Focus on how risk is
perceived
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Advocacyschool.org
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To effectively engage political representatives and
leaders you have to understand:
Public policy context
Positioning
Process
Precedent
POLIO
Politics
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Effective Leader Engagement during Health Emergencies
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Brief broadly – public health+++
Share stakeholder intelligence
Demonstrate how consequences will be managed
Give leaders an opportunity to LEAD
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